"I'm here for our second night stay at the Benjamin Young Inn Bed and Breakfast in Astoria, Oregon, on the Oregon Coast. Although it is early spring in Oregon, three of her four rooms are full tonight with guests as far away as England. After a wonderful afternoon in her Victorian Parlor having tea and homemade cookies, I'm now sitting here with Carolyn Hammer, our Innkeeper, discussing what we are going to have for breakfast tomorrow. For me this is the best part about visiting our Oregon Bed and Breakfast Guild members. FOOD! I love seeing what other Innkeepers are doing for tantalizing their guest with morning delectable treats. This morning we had a three coarse breakfast, the main coarse being a generous portion of Eggs Benedict with an option of having wild smoked Oregon salmon instead of the usual Canadian bacon. We opted in for the salmon and locally caught, fresh and to die for! When I asked the sauce was made from scratch she replied "yes, and it's easy". I've asked Carolyn for the recipe and she has graciously allowed me to share it with you." (next blog!!). I can't wait to try it on our Guests at Nob Hill Riverview Bed and Breakfast. Tomorrow we are having triple berry pancakes. Oh..do I have to go home to guests tomorrow afternoon? Can't I just stay here and play guest a little longer? I must say this is the best part of innkeeping, meeting other Innkeepers, staying and visiting their Inns by using our "Innkeeper Getaway" program. It is amazing what a three day vacation from our own Inns can do for a tired Innkeeper.

Our Oregon Bed and Breakfast Guild Innkeeper, Carolyn is taking smart advantage of living in this wonderful Coastal town of Astoria. It is a nationally significant historic region at the western end of the Lewis & Clark Trail. Astoria is the oldest American settlement west of the Rockies; a place that truly takes visitors back to simpler times, its architecture dominated by hundreds of Victorian homes, many of these beautiful historical homes are now Inns and members of Oregon Bed and Breakfast Guild themselves. I would say most of the homes here have beautiful views like the Benjamin Young Inn does. The homes in Astoria seem to be clinging to steep wooded hillsides with the revitalized 1920s era downtown in walking distance; all set against a backdrop of tremendous natural beauty in the temperate rain forest at the mouth of the Columbia River. The room we are in has a view of the famous movie inspired "Gooney's House" on the Hillside. Astoria is a city of 10,000 people on the Columbia River, just a few miles from the Pacific Ocean bordered by the Columbia to the north and Young's Bay to the south. Surrounded by water and tall evergreen Douglas Fir, Hemlock and Spruce trees, Astoria, is rich in scenic beauty, with a vista of the Pacific Ocean and its endless miles of sandy beaches viewed from a top of Astoria's historic Column.